New Beginnings
by Cabin3Demigod
Summary: Teddy proposes to Lucy. Everything is fine until Harry gives Teddy a certain something and he realizes that there is a new beginning he will explore with his fiancee. And he needs to explore it, alone.


**In this fic, Lucy was born in 2001.**

**Disclaimer: Disclaimed**

"-and the spaghetti with meat sauce," Teddy finished.

He was in a fancy French restaurant with his girlfriend of two years, Lucy Weasley. It was their anniversary and Teddy had told her to order whatever she wanted for the special occasion. Teddy grinned at her. Just as their waiter walked away, Lucy said, "Ted, I'm so happy to be here, with you."

Teddy reached across the table and held her hand. "And I you," he said slowly, kissing the back of her hand.

Lucy blushed. Attempting to hide her cheeks, she stared around the restaurant. "You've never taken me to a place of this...quality before," she said as polite as she could.

"Whatever do you mean?" Teddy inquired innocently. A grin overtook his features. He knew exactly what she was talking about. For their dates and midnight outings, he usually took her to the movies, to theme parks, to ice cream shops: the normal stuff. For their last anniversary-despite his growing budget-Teddy had taken her to an all you can eat Chinese buffet. Those places had never been as formal as this. Now, sitting in this French restaurant, Teddy couldn't think of himself as anything but foolish for never taking her out to anywhere...romantic. But he'd never tell her that.

"You know what I mean, Ted," Lucy smirked. "Why'd you bring me here rather than somewhere like an...ice cream shop?"

"I wanted to ask you something," he said simply. From the impassive look on Lucy's face, Teddy could tell that she hadn't quite got the idea yet. Perfect.

A man began stumbling toward them, large plates in his hands. "But I guess we'll eat first," Teddy said, raising an eyebrow at the man's trembling.

An hour and a half later

Lucy and Teddy were still sitting in the restaurant, gazing into each other's eyes as lovingly as they had an hour and a half before. And, evidently, they hadn't gotten tired of each other yet. They were just finishing up with their desserts-Lucy had chocolate cake and Teddy had vanilla ice cream-and Lucy had nearly completed her story about her trip to the woods with her family.

"So, Molly tried to run from the bear," Lucy continued. "But Dad said, 'Use your wand!'"

Teddy busted his gut cackling. He did it as quiet as he could, but even that wasn't quiet enough. His laughter earned him a stern look from a nearby waitress. Regaining his posture a bit, Teddy said, "So your Dad, the proper Prefect and Ministry official, told your sister to actually use magic? At thirteen!"

Lucy nodded, brushing a lock of deep red hair from her face. It was then that Teddy actually noticed her beauty. He gaped at her, just realizing what she was wearing. Lucy was sporting a tight green dress that barely reached below her knees-and that was it. Teddy gulped and caught her eyes. Lucy had noticed him staring.

"What?" she asked. It was her turn to act innocent. She grinned.

"Oh, nothing, I just," he closed his eyes and laughed silently. "That thing I wanted to ask you-."

"Yeah, that," Lucy acknowledged in a more serious tone. "What was it?"

Teddy looked away from her and stared out the window. It was snowing. The pellets dropped past the window in what seemed like a hurry. Teddy was happy that he hadn't been in a hurry with Lucy, considering that she was three years younger than him. But he hadn't been pressured to rush either. She had been willing to wait for him, and that alone had made Teddy fall in love with her.

"You know, Luce," Ted said slowly, still not looking at her. "We have...overcome obstacles that I never thought one couple could. With your age and my immaturity, I don't see how we got into this thing without rushing." Teddy finally looked at Lucy. He smirked at her bemused expression. "Do you have any idea?" he asked.

Lucy shook her head. Teddy shrugged and continued. "I took you to be more of a talker. But I love you either way. And I love you. We love-each other."

Lucy rolled her eyes. "Teddy, you beat around the bush too much! Get to the point!" She demanded.

Teddy brushed his hair back and stood. Clearing his throat, he strolled over to Lucy's side of the table and whispered, "I love you, no matter what." Lucy nodded and crossed her arms, obviously unimpressed.

Teddy took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He felt his hair change color, but he hadn't the heart to open his eyes. He was afraid of how Lucy would react to him doing what he was about to do. Teddy almost hesitated, but instead of listening to his gut, he listened to his heart and kneeled down before her.

Deciding that he would look foolish proposing with his eyes closed, Teddy hesitantly opened them. Lucy had a shocked expression on her face. Good. Maybe she knew, maybe she didn't. Teddy preferred not to know at the moment. He reached into his coat pocket and waited for a waitress to pass by before pulling out a small, white box. Lucy's eyes were on it, and she was eyeing the box hungrily. The waitress that had just walked by was too. Teddy had made sure that he and Lucy were in a secluded area, so that when he proposed, there would be no oohs and aahs. He was a shy guy, and his father had been too, according to Harry.

Teddy stroked the plain white box, thinking about how it hid a not so plain ring. Teddy opened the box, but before presenting it to Lucy, he nodded at the nosy waitress, signaling her departure. The waitress left hesitantly. Ted could tell that the ring was still on her mind. He sighed and spared a glance at his shocked girlfriend before turning the box to her. Hopefully she would be as attached to it.

Lucy's face lit up-whether it was from joy or the glow of the ring, Teddy didn't know. But she looked more beautiful than ever at this moment. The ring belonged on her hand. From the moment Ted had spotted it in Burrow's Ring Shop, he knew that she would love it. He made sure she didn't love it more than him, though. He didn't want marriage from a stupid ring, if that was where all the love was. It was admittedly beautiful. Five carats beautiful, to be exact. Pure silver, with her name written on the back. Needless to say, Teddy was screwed if she declined his proposal. _Don't rush, Ted,_ he thought. _Snow. Fall slowly._

He cleared his throat and looked up at Lucy's glowing face. "Lucy, will y-you," he stammered.

"Teddy Lupin," Lucy warned. Teddy was taken aback. Had he been rejected that quickly? Nope. "If you think that I'll wait another moment with your foolhardy stammering before putting that ring on my finger, then you are dead wrong."

Teddy grinned. "So that's a yes, love?" He held the ring closer to his chest, as to tease her more.

"Yes!" Lucy yelled. She fell on top of him and kissed him roughly. He grinned against her soft lips, his hands in her hair. The ring was still in his hand. She hadn't wanted it more than she'd wanted him. So far so good.

Hesitantly, Lucy stopped, unhooking her lips from his. Teddy licked his lips experimentally, never having kissed her with so much passion before. "What's wrong?" he asked, his tongue between his teeth. Lucy was standing, a worried expression on her face.

"Well, it's just…" _Oh no. _"I would love for our family to be here, to share this moment." She said sheepishly.

Teddy pulled out his wand and winked. "One step ahead of you love," he whispered, before shouting a spell. Instantly, he and Lucy were transported into the living room of the burrow. Surrounding them was all their family: from Andromeda and Harry, to Percy and Ron. They all grinned at Teddy and his fiancée, clapping all the while.

Teddy stood and pocketed the ring. He surveyed the room. There was a single present on the tabletop, a small note next to it. There was a white cake sitting on the couch, which had been seemingly sat on. And finally, there were a dozen 'Happy Birthday' balloons. Perfect.

George and Ron came by to pat Teddy on the back; Andromeda gave both him and Lucy kisses on their foreheads; Percy and his wife hugged Teddy tightly, both muttering a "Congratulations" before disappearing into the kitchen; Lucy's sister, Molly, shook hands with her Lucy and Teddy, as she was not used to informal greetings; Arthur, his wife, and Ginny all hugged the couple; Angela-George's wife- and Harry and Ron's children all did the same; Hermione cried in Lucy's arms before kissing Teddy on the cheek. Harry went last. There was a bemused expression on his face as he said, "Lucy, can I take you away from your fiancée for a second?"

Lucy smirked and punched Teddy playfully. "He can go…once he hands me the ring."

Teddy shook his head, scrunching up his face in the process. "No, I'd rather wait until your father was out of view."

Lucy laughed. "Okay Ted," she said playfully. She walked away to join her sister, Ginny, Hermione, and Molly in small talk.

Harry led Teddy over to the coat rack, where they both threw on their cloaks and left unnoticed. Together, they strolled out into the cold. Harry began kicking up snow from the ground.

"What's up, Harry?" Ted asked.

Harry ignored him. "Percy's taking it pretty well."

Teddy grinned and shook his head. "We didn't tell him yet," he said, running his hand through his now snow white hair.

"That would explain the birthday balloons," Harry chuckled. "No wonder he was so confused when everyone congratulated you two. Whose fake birthday was it?"

"Mine," Teddy sighed. Harry had only needed to ask because with work from the Ministry, Percy was usually too busy to remember birth dates. He would forget his own if his wife didn't wake him up with cake every year. Ted was sure that Percy would have gobbled it up if he'd said it was Lucy's birthday, but considering Percy's knowing wife, that wouldn't have worked. Besides, Percy's wife disliked Teddy enough to not bother remembering his birthday. He had been surprised to see that present from the couple on the table.

"W-What is it, Harry?" Teddy shivered. He held onto his shoulders.

Harry, appearing to be unmoved by the freezing cold, shrugged. "Ted, have you ever wondered-." He started, but Teddy stopped him in his tracks.

"No beating around the bush," Teddy pleaded. He was sounding more and more like Lucy by the second.

Harry sighed and reached into his coat pocket. He pulled out a dull rock and threw it. Teddy caught it. "What's this?" Ted asked inquisitively.

Harry continued walking, toward nothing. Led by nothing but pure instinct. "Ted…have you ever wondered if your parents would agree with your decision?"

Teddy involuntarily clutched his heart. His parents. How he missed them. But why was Harry bringing them up at such an inappropriate time?

Harry turned when Teddy did not answer, just in time to see Teddy nod, a bemused expression on his face. "I guess," Teddy said hesitantly.

Harry took a step toward him. Teddy hadn't moved since he'd caught the rock. Harry patted Teddy on the back and stared at the rock longingly. "Just don't…don't stay too long." Harry sighed. "Turn the rock over twice and…and think of them."

"Is this some kind of trick?" Teddy demanded.

"No," Harry said. "It's the start of a new beginning." And with that, he spun on his heel and walked back into the house, leaving Teddy speechless.

Turn it around twice? What was he, some creepy voodoo artist? Teddy almost declared Harry mental, but curiosity killed the cat. Teddy took a deep breath and began turning the rock. _One._ He felt foolish just rolling it in his hand. _Two._

"Ah!" Teddy shouted. He nearly dropped the rock from shock. Standing in front of him were his parents. They smiled sadly at him.

His mother was standing on the right, her appearance angelic despite the fact that she was dead. Her hair was light pink and her eyes deep blue. Her smile was sad, yet happy, as was Ted's father's.

His father had dark brown hair and brown eyes, just like Ted himself. Even through the veil in which his father was incased in, Teddy inhaled the smell of books and fresh parchment and…chocolate. Just as Harry had described them.

"Mum? Dad?" Teddy whispered in disbelief.

His father nodded. "Yes, Ted." His voice was rather haughty.

"We've been watching over you-since you were two months old." His mother said sweetly. She reached out and tried to touch his hair. Teddy smiled, but it slowly fainted when his mother's hand went right through him. Tears sparked her eyes, regardless of her smirk.

"Mum," Ted said again. He was speechless. His eyes were watering.

His mother broke down in tears, covering her face. Teddy sighed and turned to his father, not wanting to see his mother cry in fear of doing so himself. "Dad," Teddy said stupidly. He knew what he was saying this time. He did it out of sadness.

"Son," His father replied simply.

"I miss you…I miss you both," Teddy said, gathering himself.

"We miss-," His mother started, but the sound of a creaking door interrupted her speech.

"Ted, you okay?" Lucy called from behind.

Teddy's mother and father locked hands, smiling at each other. A tear rolled down his father's cheek, his mother already bawling. Suddenly, he understood.

"This is…its goodbye forever, isn't it?" Teddy asked, tears running down his cheeks. "Until the afterlife. You've watched me my whole life, just waiting for me to grow up and be my own person?"

His parents just nodded. His mother buried her head in her husband's cardigan.

The sound of shuffling feet came from behind. "Teddy?" Lucy asked, a bit more worried.

"We accept your marriage," His father said sadly, tears now covering his face too.

"W-What?" Teddy demanded. "You just can't go!"

"Drop the stone, Ted," Remus coaxed. "Drop the stone." There was a hint of finality in his voice, determination and sadness in his eyes. This hurt Remus more than it hurt Teddy.

"Goodbye, Dad," Teddy whispered, dropping the stone. His parents disappeared instantly.

He wiped his face and turned just in time to see Lucy coming up behind him. It lightened his heart to know just how much she cared.

"Teddy?" She asked. He took her hand.

"I love you," he whispered.

"I love you, too," Lucy grinned, wrapping her arms around him.

After a few moments, he looked down at her. He kicked the stone. "We need to bury this, Luce," Teddy sighed. It hurt his heart that he'd never see his parents again, but not so much when he realized it was a lie. He'd see them again. When it was his time.

Lucy stared at him. "What? Why?"

"Because sometimes…sometimes we all need a new beginning." Teddy said, handing the stone to her. She accepted it and rolled it in her hands, bemused.

"Whatever makes you happy, Ted," she said.

If only she'd known.

Somewhere, far far away, in the afterlife, Remus and Tonks turned to each other.

"He's grown into a very well young man," Remus said to his wife.

Tonks gazed downward and smiled at Teddy as he made snow angels with his fiancée. "Yes," she said.

Remus waited, and then-

"You ready to go?" he asked.

Tonks nodded, the pain taking a toll on her heart. She hated to say goodbye to her little boy forever. _Their _little boy. But Teddy had been right: sometimes everyone did need a new beginning. Besides, she'd see her little boy again. Somewhere in the distant future, she hoped.

Remus held out his hand and Tonks took it. "To the afterlife?" he asked. "Permanently?"

"I'd be honored," Tonks grinned.


End file.
